VAT Return Deadlines & Penalties: A Calendar for UK Businesses
Missing a VAT deadline can now result in separate consequences for filing late and paying late, making it important for businesses to understand exactly when their returns and payments are due.
For most VAT-registered businesses, the timetable is relatively straightforward: VAT returns are usually submitted every three months, with the filing and payment deadline falling one calendar month and seven days after the end of the VAT accounting period.
However, different rules apply to businesses using the Annual Accounting Scheme or making VAT payments on account.
Hartley Fowler’s VAT specialists can help businesses prepare VAT returns, maintain compliant records and manage filing requirements with HMRC.
Here are the key VAT deadlines and penalty rules businesses need to understand.
When Is My VAT Return Due?
Most businesses submit a VAT return every three months.
For standard quarterly VAT returns, HMRC’s online filing deadline is normally:
One calendar month and seven days after the end of the accounting period.
The same date is usually also the VAT payment deadline.
For example:
| VAT quarter ends | Typical filing and payment deadline |
| 31 March | 7 May |
| 30 June | 7 August |
| 30 September | 7 November |
| 31 December | 7 February |
These examples assume standard quarterly periods.
Your exact deadline is shown in your VAT online account, and businesses should always check this rather than relying solely on a generic calendar.
Do You Still Need to File if No VAT Is Due?
Yes.
VAT-registered businesses normally need to submit a VAT return for every accounting period, even if there is:
- No VAT to pay
- Nothing to reclaim
- No trading activity
- A repayment due from HMRC
A nil return submitted late can still generate a penalty point under the current late-submission system.
Hartley Fowler can prepare and submit VAT returns as part of its VAT accounting services, helping businesses maintain a consistent filing timetable.
How Does the VAT Penalty Points System Work?
For VAT periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023, late filing is dealt with under the VAT penalty points system.
Each time you file a VAT return late, you normally receive one penalty point.
The threshold depends on how frequently you submit returns:
| Filing frequency | Penalty point threshold |
| Annual | 2 points |
| Quarterly | 4 points |
| Monthly | 5 points |
Once you reach the threshold, HMRC charges a £200 penalty.
If you remain at the threshold and submit another return late, another £200 penalty can be charged for that late return.
This means a business filing quarterly does not normally receive a financial penalty for its first late return, but repeated late filing can eventually result in charges.
Points can be removed once the relevant compliance conditions are met.
What Happens if You Miss a VAT Payment Deadline?
Late payment is treated separately from late filing.
HMRC’s current system allows a short period before financial penalties begin, but late-payment interest starts from the first day the VAT is overdue.
For VAT due under the current penalty regime:
Up to 15 Days Late
There is no late-payment penalty, although interest can still apply from day one.
16–30 Days Late
The first late-payment penalty is generally 3% of the VAT outstanding at day 15.
31 Days or More Late
The first penalty can include:
- 3% of the amount outstanding at day 15
- A further 3% of the amount still outstanding at day 30
A second penalty then accrues from day 31 at an annualised rate of 10% on the remaining unpaid balance, calculated daily.
If you cannot pay on time, contacting HMRC promptly about a possible Time to Pay arrangement can reduce the risk of penalties escalating.
What Is Late Payment Interest on VAT?
HMRC charges late payment interest on overdue VAT from the first day after the payment deadline until the balance is paid in full.
The interest rate can change, so businesses should check the current HMRC rate rather than relying on an old percentage.
Importantly, a business can therefore avoid an immediate late-payment penalty by paying within the initial penalty-free window but may still have interest to pay.
This makes paying as close to the original deadline as possible important even where the delay is relatively short.
Making Tax Digital for VAT Deadlines
Making Tax Digital for VAT does not create a separate quarterly filing timetable.
VAT-registered businesses still follow their normal VAT return dates, but they must keep specified VAT records digitally and submit returns using compatible software unless they qualify for an exemption.
Hartley Fowler supports businesses using cloud accounting systems through its cloud-based accounting services, including software capable of maintaining digital VAT records and submitting MTD-compatible returns.
Businesses using more than one software product also need to maintain appropriate digital links between systems rather than manually copying VAT return information between them.
VAT Annual Accounting Scheme Deadlines
The VAT Annual Accounting Scheme works differently from standard quarterly returns.
Businesses using the scheme generally submit one VAT return each year and make advance VAT payments during the year.
Where the accounting period is between four and 12 months, the annual VAT return is normally due two months after the end of the accounting period.
Advance payments are normally made:
- Monthly — at the end of months 4 through 12, or
- Quarterly — at the end of months 4, 7 and 10
The final balancing payment is then made when the annual return is submitted.
HMRC provides the exact payment schedule for businesses using the scheme.
VAT Payments on Account Deadlines
Very large VAT payers may be required to make payments on account.
HMRC currently applies the regime to quarterly VAT businesses whose VAT liability exceeds £2.3 million in a period of 12 months or less.
Payments on account are advance payments towards the quarterly VAT bill.
They are normally due on the last working day of the second and third months of each VAT quarter.
The normal seven-day electronic payment extension does not apply to these payments.
A balancing payment is then made when the quarterly VAT return is due.
Businesses within this regime should follow HMRC’s individual payment schedule carefully because late payments can attract interest and potentially penalties.
A Simple VAT Deadline Checklist
For most businesses, good VAT compliance comes down to maintaining a repeatable process.
Before every deadline:
- Reconcile sales and purchase records.
- Check VAT coding and adjustments.
- Review unusual or high-value transactions.
- Confirm the return figures.
- Submit through MTD-compatible software.
- Arrange payment with enough time for funds to clear.
- Check that HMRC has received both the return and payment.
Businesses should not leave the payment until the filing deadline without checking how long their chosen payment method takes to reach HMRC.
Hartley Fowler’s wider business accounting and tax services can help integrate VAT compliance with bookkeeping, accounts and wider tax planning.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is my VAT return due?
For most quarterly VAT returns, the deadline is one calendar month and seven days after the end of the VAT accounting period. The payment is generally due on the same date. Your exact deadline can be checked through your HMRC VAT online account.
What happens if I submit my VAT return late?
You normally receive a penalty point for each late return. Quarterly filers reach the penalty threshold at four points, at which point HMRC charges a £200 penalty. Further late returns while at the threshold can result in additional £200 penalties.
What happens if I cannot pay my VAT on time?
Late-payment interest begins from the first day the VAT is overdue, while financial late-payment penalties generally begin once the payment is at least 16 days late. Contacting HMRC promptly may allow you to discuss a Time to Pay arrangement.
Stay Ahead of Your VAT Deadlines
Understanding VAT return deadlines in the UK is important because late filing and late payment are now dealt with separately.
For most businesses, the key date is one month and seven days after each VAT quarter ends. But Annual Accounting, payments on account and other arrangements can create different deadlines.
Hartley Fowler provides specialist VAT return and VAT accounting services for start-ups, SMEs and established businesses, covering return preparation, registration, VAT strategy and more complex transactions.
If you want support managing VAT returns, digital record keeping or HMRC deadlines, contact Hartley Fowler or call the Wimbledon office on 020 8946 1212.